This invention relates to contact terminals.
Many portions of electronic apparatus require, or could benefit from, a terminal which provides a quick electrical connection to a pair of insulated current-carrying wires. For example, telephone wires must be electrically connected to equipment located on the side of the home. Typically, this connection is done by a craftsperson who strips off the insulation at the ends of the wires and wraps the wires around binding posts electrically connected to the equipment.
As should be appreciated, this method is rather time consuming and involves some degree of skill on the part of a craftsperson.
It is desirable in this application, and wherever insulated wire pairs are used, to provide a means for quick electrical connection of the wires. It is also desirable to provide means for preventing undue bending of the wires after they are connected to avoid breakage of the wires or loosening of the connection.
It has been recognized in the art that insulation displacement contacts can be utilized to connect wires in a speedy fashion. Such contacts include openings for the wires comprising sharp edges which cut through the wires as they are inserted therein (see, for example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,702,538 issued to Hutter et al, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,820,192 issued to Denkmann et al). Some strain relief mechanism has also been proposed for use in connection with such contacts (see, eg, U.S. Pat. No. 4,642,873 issued to Bower, Jr. et al). However, the prior art schemes generally have required manual separation of the wires before insertion into the contacts thereby compromising the speed of connection.
It is, therefore, an object of the invention to provide a terminal which permits a quick connection of insulated pairs of wires.